The Four Seasons
by aprilcats
Summary: Mercedes (aka Merry) leaves home for the first time ever with her Pokemon companion, a Sawsbuck named Fannar. Merry comes from a long line of mountain dwellers, but has a growing curiosity of the outside world she has never stepped foot in. She soon gets the chance she's been waiting for, but it quickly throws her in the middle of an adventure she isn't prepared to face.
1. Part 1, Chapter 1

Part One

Winter

1

The dark shadows of the mountains stretched out over the snow covered range as the sun went down, its light slowly escaping the area. The wind softly blew the top layers of snow in the same general direction as the last rays of light caught them and caused the cold powder to sparkle.

Over the hills, there were two shadows moving towards one of the many large mountains. The shadows were of two figures, a petite girl and a large reindeer-like creature. They were traveling uphill, walking back to their home nestled on the mountain looming over them. Clouds of their warm breath added to the cold atmosphere as they trudged along, finding themselves in deep snow. The girl had a little trouble when the snow reached her knees, but her loyal companion nudged her shoulder, offering a ride on his back. She nodded, and climbed up, grasping his neck and burying her cold hands into the tufts of white fur around his neck.

Although they had lived in the mountains their whole life so far, sometimes the weather threw challenges at them here and there to keep them on their game. The girl had a job to do, as the rest of her family and their ancestors once did long ago; herd their group of the Pokémon, Sawsbuck; the same Pokemon carrying the girl on his back through the deep snow. However, that particular day, the herding job was handed to the girl's step brother, giving her the day off. So she spent the day with her Sawsbuck, exploring the mountainous region they had come to know and love as they both grew over the years.

The two enjoyed taking long walks up the mountains and down in the valleys, racing with the girl's family members and their trusty Sawsbuck companions, and taking deep breaths of the mountain air as they lay on the snow, looking up at the bright winter sky.

All they truly knew was life in the mountains, the life their ancestors had given them, the job they passed down, and the connection to nature that came naturally to them all. Earth and sky, sun and moon, snow and flowers, the cold air of winter and the muggy heat of summer, and every other bit of wonder that nature brought to them. Their job was to herd the great Sawsbuck, the main Pokemon of their culture, but their way of life called them to remember the importance of being one with nature by respecting the earth and every creature on it.

The girl pulled her scarf up to her ears and looked ahead. A small hut was coming into view with smoke emerging from the chimney. After a long day of adventure, they were finally home.


	2. Part 1 Chapter 2

2

"Hey, Merry!"

Light poured into the room from the frosted window as a lump of blankets on a small, wooden bed moved slightly. The warmth built up overnight kept the inhabitant snuggled inside underneath the thick blankets. Not one part of her was cold.

"Hey, Merry!" Heavy footsteps were heard outside the door. They were moving around the small hut earlier, but were now getting closer to the door of the room.

"Those Sawsbuck aren't going to herd themselves, you know!"

"Uhh, Connor," replied the girl, barely poking her head out from under the blankets, "I got back late last night, give me a few more minutes."

The door creaked open just a crack.

"No can do," he said, "We've got to bring the Pokemon out of the stables to eat, then we've got some visitors who were interested in purchasing a couple of Sawsbuck to raise themselves. I'm going to need help," he stated, "And, I do remember giving you the day off yesterday."

"I'm getting up," she said, slowly emerging from the pile of blankets into the chilly air of the hut.

"Alrighty, Merry," Connor smiled, "I'll be outside."

"And stop calling me that," she said, "My name is Mercedes."

"Okay, whatever, Merry." He remarked as he turned around, waving his hand.

Mercedes stepped outside, breathing in the cold air blowing in from the mountains. She pulled her sky blue scarf over her nose and fastened her hat, which had a habit of blowing off, onto her head of light, almost white, hair. She wore a roomy black coat over multiple layers of thinner shirts along with a pair of waterproof pants and snow boots. As Mercedes put her gloves on, she noticed Connor speaking with the two visitors near the stables.

They looked oddly identical with matching black hats and dress coats. Their dark hair appeared to be slicked back. A pair of sunglasses covered each client's eyes from view. They even had the same inviting smile.

"Mercedes!" Connor shouted, waving her over.

"Coming!" Mercedes replied with a wave back.

Mercedes sprinted over to the stables and joined the group. The two men gave her a warm greeting, introducing themselves as Pokemon caretakers from the Unova region.

Unova was right below where Mercedes, Connor, and the rest of their family lived, when they were together raising the Sawsbuck rather than temporarily apart in the mountain range. Because they lived so far north, the family was not considered to be a part of Unova, or any region, for that matter.

Instead, they were considered citizens of the unnamed mountains and were permitted to visit the region, or any region, only if they are given a pass from that region's local government.

"They don't want us sneaking into their regions," Mercedes's mother once told her, "We belong up here. We are the people of the mountains, people of the Sawsbuck, and people of the four seasons."

"We've come to check out your business," one of the men said, "We heard about you from multiple locations in Unova; from the farms to the towns, even to the huge cities!" he said with excitement.

"I remember seeing your products in stores," the other man remarks, "for example, the gloves I'm wearing are from this very place." He flipped the bottom of the glove up, revealing his wrist and the label of the business, which was a black circle with an icon of a Sawsbuck. "It's amazing what you guys do with Sawsbuck fur," he said, "And we're interested in giving you a deal."

"Well," Connor said, "I'm definitely interested in hearing you out, but we aren't exactly allowed to make business deals or offers without our family's approval. Either we're all for it or we're all against it; we don't make individual deals like this."

"Who is included in your family, and where are they right now?" One of the men asked.

"I'm glad you said 'included' because we're not all exactly flesh and blood related," Connor replied. "Mercedes here is my step-sister; her mother married my father, so each of our grandparents are now sort of combined. Each of our families were from different parts of the mountains, so when they came together, they decided to move everyone in this spot. Now that Mercedes and I are a few years older, they trust us to take care of the Sawsbuck we have while they go off to different parts and try out new training and feeding techniques. They'll be back in the spring."

" _Spring?_ " One of the men replied, grinding his teeth. His business partner sensed the tension and quickly pulled him away into a huddle.

Connor shot Mercedes a confused look and shrugged.

"What do we do?" she whispered.

"Hang on," he replied as the two walked back to them.

"I apologize," said the man that caused the awkward moment, "I must admit, I do get impatient at times."

"It's no problem," Connor replied, "I'm sorry for the inconvenience. As soon as our family returns, I'll contact you about that deal."

The men nodded, "That would be excellent," they said and handed Connor their business card.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, as well," one of the men said to Mercedes as he shook her hand softly. Although she couldn't see his eyes clearly behind his sunglasses, she could have sworn that he gave her a wink.


End file.
